Staff Writer, with CNA
A government-run aquaculture laboratory has developed two food ingredients based on algae extracts that proved effective in mitigating metabolic syndrome by controlling blood pressure levels and blood fat, the Council of Agriculture reported yesterday.
The ingredients developed by the council’s Fisheries Research Institute (FRI) are Fuso-trehalose — a sugar that exists in algae, mushrooms, beans, shrimp and bread — and “instant kanten” — the Japanese name for agar.
Wu Chun-heng, director of the FRI’s Seafood Technology Division, said that in addition to moderating blood pressure and lipid level, Fuso-trehalose also Aenhances the defense mechanism against pathogenic viruses and bacteria in the human immune system.
“Japanese physicians have long experience in using trehalose compounds as a supplementary treatment for cancer patients,” Wu said.
Wu said Fuso-trehalose can be used as a food ingredient because its chemical structure can survive even in environments of 121°C for 30 minutes or 100°C for one hour — the temperatures and times usually used for food sterilization.
The trehalose made by Japanese companies is only 80-percent pure, while the Fuso-trehalose produced by the FRI is 90 percent pure or more, which makes the refined ingredient very competitive on the market, Wu said, adding that the relevant technologies have been passed on to a local company.
In the case of instant kanten, Wu said that the products currently available on the market are neither easy to cook nor were they very portable, thus the FRI group came up with the idea of making instant noodle-like kanten products.
These products contain kanten powder that can be brewed with hot water at 85°C.
FRI Researchers said that dietary fiber-laced kanten could be used as meal replacements for patients with metabolic syndrome or persons who wish to control their weight.
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